Even loners get lonely (ForteEXE x Reader)
by tigersoul23
Summary: Forte finds himself walking through Net City in the middle of the night, where he meets a Net Navi named Keiko. She knows Dr. Cossack as he did, as the man who created them. She seems to have been searching for him for a while, little does he know, that his life is about to be changed forever.
1. The Meeting

Name: Keiko

Net Op status: none

Looks: Dark blue armor with violet highlights. Her helmet looks kind of like Forte's, except the 'fins' look more like wings. Her symbol (on her shoulders) is a blue phoenix on a violet background. Her face has markings similar to Forte, except hers are blue. She also has golden eyes that turn red when she's fighting.

History: She was created by Dr. Cossack shortly after Forte disappeared, she was released into Net City to find Forte. Not to take him back, but to try and befriend him. She was released just before Dr. Cossack died of old age. She doesn't know what Forte has become over the years since Dr. Cossack died, but she tries to find him anyway.

Abilities: She also has 'ability get' ability, she uses crystal, fire, and water based attacks. She has a hidden power she only uses when she is in a battle she knows she can't win. It aids in escape, but has a troublesome side effect (which you readers will find out later).

Anyway, let's get this story started~! First, we'll begin in Forte's POV.

* * *

I was walking through Net City, not a single Net Navi was outside at this point. It's the middle of the night for crying out loud! I guess I must have been wrong with that perception, because about ten minutes into my walk, a blue armored Navi stood ahead of me, though she fell to the ground moments after I saw her. I didn't bother to rush to her; instead I casually walked to her, realizing she was exhausted by the time I reached her. I knelt down beside her, placing a hand on her helmet. I felt reassured for some reason. I thought I was the only one here; maybe she is like me… With no Net Op or restrictions? No, she couldn't be that…Could she? I felt her stir beneath my hand; her eyes were a bright golden color as she stared at me. Her voice, I couldn't stop it from echoing in my mind the minute she started talking.

"Are you…Forte?" When I heard my own name being asked of me, I nodded with a wicked smile. I was trying to intimidate her into running, but she just pushed herself to a kneeling position similar to my own. She must have a death wish if she's not running, what she said next proved me wrong. "I was created by Dr. Cossack shortly after you ran off; he told me so much about you, as well as the betrayal that the system blamed on you."

I was shocked; SHE was made by Dr. Cossack, the man I thought betrayed me by not trying to aid me. I asked a simple question, though I knew it would be difficult to answer, I wanted to test her, to see if she was telling the truth.

"Why did Dr. Cossack create you? What is your purpose?" She answered me, her golden eyes locked on my own; I didn't think that a Net Navi's eyes could be so beautiful. Stop it Forte! Why am I thinking like this? She's just another Net Navi , isn't she?

"I have no purpose as far as I'm aware, Dr. Cossack died before he had a chance to tell me… I've been going by the things that he told me of you, I wanted to find you. I don't like being alone. And I doubt you do either."

In all truth, she was right. I was beginning to grow lonely, being the ultimate Net Navi made everyone I walk to run in fear. However, this Navi, the only one who didn't bother to run, has actually gained my interest. Could it be that I…Love her? No… It couldn't be love, could it? I looked into her eyes, shining in the dim light of Net City's false moonlight.

"You know." I began, unable to contain my thoughts much longer, "For a Navi made before Dr. Cossack's passing, you really are a…Different one" I was so close to saying cute or beautiful, I'm so happy I didn't say that.

"Dr. Cossack was sad when you left Forte." My eyes widened, was it because I left that Dr. Cossack died? Did I really cause his old age to finally get to him after she was created?

"He was…?" I asked in speculation, her answer was simple, and I finally understood something that I never did before.

"He wouldn't stop talking about how great you were, how you busted down every virus, malfunction, or rogue security Navi that you saw. Whenever he talked about you he'd start crying. If you think it was your fault he died, he died of old age, not from stress. He died in his sleep, so he was peacefully taken. Forte, I never told you my name, I'm Keiko."

I smiled, her name was, well… Fitting for her. I stood, holding my hand out to her. She wrapped her hand around mine as I pulled her to her feet. She was the bravest, and I'll admit, most beautiful Net Navi I might ever meet.


	2. Keiko Kidnapped!

Okay, as of now, all of the story will be in Forte's POV unless the story setup requires a POV change.

Enjoy the story anyway!

~Tigerfire23

* * *

As other Net Navis began to enter Net City, I began to lead Keiko around, showing her my favorite places to watch the other Navis. When she asked why I watched them, I looked into her beautiful golden eyes… I mentally slapped myself in the face, there was no way a Navi would WANT to love me, much less befriend me, but again, she was different. She is interested in my past, my likes and dislikes, everything. Maybe she really was made to be my friend, however when she looked into my eyes with that smile, I felt my face heat up. Maybe she was created to actually be there for me… I didn't know. She spoke softly, placing a hand on my shoulder, making me snap out of my thoughts.

"Why do you watch them when you can be there to?" Her voice echoed in my mind, soft, sweet, kind. Three out of many things I've been lacking in my life.

"Because" I began, my left hand instinctively moving towards hers, landing on top of her hand. I didn't want to scare her away, she was the best companion I've ever had, or maybe ever will have. "they are afraid of me; I'm the only Net Navi with no Net Op, that is, until you came along."

Her eyes stared into mine for a moment, I knew she was confused. What she said next caught me off guard, but I felt really happy that she said that.

"Just because you don't have a Net Op, doesn't mean that you're scary, just different, misunderstood." I could feel my face heating up again, I tried to hide it but she blinked, turning her head to see a large Net Navi staring up at us. Colonel stood below the place we were, watching us in silence.

I looked to Keiko, who was leaning forward to get a better view of Colonel. She slid from where she stood, falling. Luckily she grabbed the edge of the cyber building, hanging on for dear life. Where we were, if she fell straight to the ground, it would mean instant deletion and I'd be alone again. I reached out for her hand, Navis screamed below me, Colonel jumped on the side of a nearby building, launching from there to grab Keiko and take her to the ground. Instead of putting her down, he ran off. He thought I pushed her off, I could tell. I jumped down to follow them, using darkness overload as a way to slow down.

When I reached the ground, I heard her screaming my name, I hadn't been able to help her in combat, and she was defenseless right now. I didn't hesitate in dashing past countless Navis, rushing to find her. Colonel jacked out, taking Keiko with him. I stopped in my tracks, my eyes wide as I realized my only friend was gone. I jacked out, using the Kid Grave robot I found days before to search the area for any sign of Keiko. As I walked through Dentec City (Sp?) using the robot as a body, I saw a news cast, live from Sci-Lab. I listened to it as I watched the screen. I was hoping with my entire mind that Keiko wasn't there. To my dismay, the news cast proved my fears.

"Recently a Net Navi with no Net Op has been discovered and contained by a mysterious Navi called 'Colonel'. This Navi that you see here was created by the same man who created Forte. This Navi is a potential danger to Net City, and thus this Navi's fate, sad to say, has been sealed." I instantly dashed to Sci-Lab, hoping I wasn't too late to save her.

Just as I entered the doors, the people inside ran, clearly Kid Grave wasn't so popular with anyone. I ran to a computer and jacked myself in, instantly fighting my way through firewalls and security Navis to get to Keiko.

When I finally found her, she was surrounded by security Navis, their weapons aimed at her. She was defenseless! Don't they have any honor?! I used Area Steal to make my way to Keiko's side, wrapping my arms around her shaking, frightened body. Instantly she wrapped her arms around me, still shaking as the security Navis lowered their weapons and backed away, Colonel stood there, watching in silence as he pulled his own weapon into view. I aimed darkness overload with one hand at Colonel, and kept the other around Keiko, holding her head against my shoulder. I wasn't about to let them delete my only friend.

"Forte, why are you here? You were the one who got her into this mess." Colonel's voice stated coldly.

"You really need to open your eyes for once Colonel!" I shouted, "I was trying to save her! She slipped as she was trying to figure out what you were doing!" Instantly, Keiko spoke up. Her voice was shaking, but still solid enough to get what she wanted to say out.

"Why must I be deleted? I don't understand" Colonel looked at Keiko with cold eyes before speaking.

"You are the same as Forte, that makes you easily manipulated and potentially dangerous, we cannot risk that" I spoke up, my voice filled with rage as I held Keiko close to me.

"She has no way to defend herself! I don't know what her abilities are and neither does she! Where is your honor NOW Colonel?!" Colonel was about to say something else when Dr. Hikari spoke up, his face appearing on a screen behind Colonel. I saw his son Lan, Chaud Blaze, Raika, and Famous there to, each of them watching on separate screens behind Colonel.

"Colonel, if what Forte says is true, your claim of this Navi being dangerous is now null and void." Lan spoke up next as Megaman, Protoman, and Searchman jacked in, surrounding us in silence.

"Forte, how do you know her?" Megaman asked the same question as Protoman and Searchman remained silent, I knew those two were going to be trouble.

"She's my friend, we have a lot in common, we're both alone, we have no Net Op, and we both want to stay alive. I know she's unable to battle because if she was she would have fought the security Navis herself!" Protoman glanced from me to Keiko, I didn't lower my guard, but I stopped the darkness overload that was charging.

"Forte," Protoman's seemingly blank voice began, "If she can't defend herself, why don't you let one of us help her?" I instantly looked at Keiko, she was scared and I knew it. I looked back to Protoman, he wasn't armed, but Searchman however, he couldn't put that blaster away, it was part of his programming.

"Forte, if you knew what was best for her you'd let us help with her abilities" Stated Searchman; I placed my free arm around Keiko's shoulders, keeping her close to me as I glared at them. I was giving them a silent way of saying 'No way in Hell!' But I didn't want to scare Keiko; she already had been through so much. I didn't want her freaking out because of me. When I looked at Chaud's screen, his eyes were wide, so were all the others. Famous, however, I couldn't tell because of the glasses he wore.

"Forte" Famous began, "I know you don't want to leave her, but she needs to learn her abilities, if not unlock them." I looked at Keiko as he continued, "If you want to, you two can stay together while she learns under a Net Saver Navi of your choice." Her golden eyes looked up at me, she was still scared I could tell. I looked into her eyes reassuringly, trying to help her calm down as Famous continued. "However, you must not interfere with them unless you think she's in real danger, do we have a deal?"

Keiko's golden eyes swirled with anxiety, I sighed, looking at Famous' screen,

"I want to talk to Keiko about it first, alone" Famous nodded and the other Navis jacked out, I gently pushed her backwards so I could look my friend in the eyes, speaking to her in the most comforting way I could muster. "Keiko, I know you're scared, but don't worry, I won't let anyone hurt you as long as I'm around. Okay?" Keiko nodded silently as I looked to Dr. Hikari's screen, nodding in agreement to the deal.

Megaman, Protoman and Searchman all jacked back in, waiting in silence for who I would choose to allow Keiko to learn from. I looked at Keiko, who was holding my left arm in her hands.

Searchman was out of the question, he went by military standards; he'd be busy all the time and force her into battles she didn't know how to fight.

Megaman was another choice, but that would mean our rivalry would be in a standstill unless she got put in danger by him on purpose.

Protoman was serious, almost cold; he was part of an entire business for crying out loud! The worst he could do was find time to battle with her; he'd probably force her abilities and scare her into fights. I didn't want her in that situation at all.

So I looked at Megaman, sighing softly before speaking. I thought I was going to regret this. "Listen Megaman, if you happen to put Keiko in danger or come between us, this cease-fire between us WILL be demolished. And I WILL put the phrase 'an eye for an eye' into practice, understand?"

Megaman nodded, his voice calm as he spoke,

"Don't worry Forte, I won't get between you two, or put Keiko in danger on purpose, that doesn't mean that she's completely safe, it just means I won't cause the danger ok?"

I nodded slowly, accepting Megaman's statement. Keiko looked at Megaman in silence, her golden eyes cautiously watching him as the two of us walked to the Navi I consider my rival. I looked down at her slightly, her eyes just inches from my own in height. I smiled reassuringly towards her, causing her to smile back at me. I felt one of her hands release my arm as her right hand slid into mine, smiling, I wrapped my fingers across her palm, letting her know in silence that she was going to be okay.


	3. Pride and Love

It's been three days and I'm actually starting to see why Megaman and I are rivals, but at the same time why we shouldn't be. Keiko was learning quickly, she already figured out she could use fire, water, and crystal attacks. But she still needs to master them; just knowing what you can do doesn't mean that you mastered them.

I watched as Keiko ran up to Megaman, swinging a crystal blade around herself in graceful yet erratic patterns. I was watching her fight him, she was giving him no room to retaliate. I smiled; she was improving so well so fast. I was happy to know she was going to soon be able to defend herself, at the same time I was sad, what if the darkloids got to her? What would they do to her if they had a chance to do anything? I knew she wasn't defenseless, but the darkloids were definitely stronger than her. Just as I looked back to Keiko and Megaman, I saw that another Navi appeared black and white armor with red and black hair, he had a visor that resembled a grid of sorts and his symbol was a white puzzle piece… That was odd to say the least. The Navi then began to approach Keiko from behind, Megaman tried warning her but she was accidentally hit in the face by his megabuster. I dashed over to help, only to suddenly be trapped in a net of tangled data.

"What the hell!?" I began to struggle, only making the tangled data wrap tighter around my body, the data itself held me in place as the Navi grabbed Keiko from behind, pulling her away from Megaman, holding her by the back of her neck as he pulled her arms behind her back. I struggled even more when I realized what happened next, Keiko stopped moving, she was limp, nothing more than a ragdoll of a Navi. I watched in horror, was she going to be deleted? Or was she going to be taken to the darkloids? I didn't know, I used darkness overload to destroy the data net and dashed to them, kicking the Navi aside and picked Keiko up in my arms, I looked at Megaman as he pushed himself to his feet.

"Who was that?" Megaman asked, his voice surprised, my answer was simple as I searched the area for the Navi, only to find emptiness.

"I don't know." As I looked down at Keiko, she groaned, her eyes slowly opening. As she looked up at me, I wrapped my arms around her, Megaman placed a hand on my shoulder from behind.

"She's safe, that's all that should matter Forte…"

Megaman was right, but also wrong. The darkloids knew about her now. I didn't want her to be one of them; I wanted her to be free, like me. But even I couldn't protect her forever, I knew someday I'd be deleted, I wasn't sure how or by who, just that I would be.

"Forte, Who was" She began, I wouldn't let her worry about it. Actually, I couldn't let her worry.

"Forte, That Navi…" I cut her off, tightening my grip around her but not so much that it would freak her out.

"Forget that Navi, I'm right here, he won't hurt you again." As I finished I felt her arms wrap around my neck, I smiled in silence; not wanting to end this moment.

(( there's a romantic end for you guys to make up for how short it was, see you all later for the next installment!)


	4. First kiss

It has been a week since Keiko's run in with a darkloid; she never let her guard down unless I was around. Whenever she saw any sort of trouble near her, she'd dash to the rescue, normally it was a darkloid or a disagreement between Net Navis, this time however; it was a group of Net Navis trying to delete another Navi. Darkloids no doubt were up to no good again. Keiko quickly defeated them and looked up at me from my perch of sorts on the roof of a building; a simple smile I couldn't delete from my own memory, plastered on her face as she jumped up to join me.

"How was that for a sneak attack?" she asked, I laughed and wrapped my right arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer to me.

"Not bad at all, although… you could use a bit of help when it comes to destroying their defenses." As I said this she laughed softly, wrapping her arms around my neck and pecked my cheek with a soft kiss. 'Wait… Did she just…Kiss me?' My mind began to race as I turned my face towards her, unable to hide a blush. She laughed again, speaking softly.

"Did you not expect that Forte?" I shook my head and placed my hand that was on her right shoulder on the back of her head. I was smirking at her, though she didn't know why. In this case, I was about to surprise her with something she wouldn't ever expect.

"I might not have expected you to do that." I began, my lips dancing near the side of her face; I could tell she was confused by the look in her eyes. I continued, my lips drawing closer to hers without her knowing. "But I doubt you'll expect this."

With that, I kissed her on the lips, holding her there with my hand, which was still on the back of her head. Her eyes had widened for a few moments, her expression shocked from what I just did. I wrapped my left arm around her waist and soon felt her respond, her lips pressed against mine with just as much passion as I was showing. I heard murmurs below us, but I didn't care, this was our moment; our time; us alone could feel the passion soar through the air around us. I enjoyed every moment of this, and I could tell she did to. When our kiss ended, I looked down at the countless Net Navis through the corner of my eye; Keiko didn't seem to notice them at all. She had blocked the entire world out, leaving just the sight of me in front of her in her vision. The Net Navis all silenced as I moved my lips back to the side of her face before whispering.

"I've always loved you, from the first time you told me that you wanted to be by my side, the days you kept listening to me talk about my ups and downs, I knew you were for me. And don't lie to me; I know you enjoyed our moment." She whispered back to me, her voice still as soft and kind as ever.

"You are right, I did enjoy that, and I didn't expect it either." She looked me in the eyes again, her beautifully glowing golden eyes staring into mine. "I love you Forte." I smiled; pulling her even closer, if that was even possible.

"I love you to Keiko."

((Talk about major cute sorry it's so short again, I'm busy in reality XD))


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